Layoff

In Microsoft’s case, the initial communication about the layoffs back in July was a textbook flop. A wordy 1,100-word company email announced the layoffs all the way down in the eleventh paragraph, so far buried in management terminology as to be lost to the casual reader. The letter was authored not by Microsoft’s CEO, Satya … Continue reading →

Microsoft has confirmed today that 2100 employees were cut today as part of the previously announced layoffs. Of those cut, 747 were in the state of Washington with the rest occurring in offices around the world. Back in July, Microsoft said that it would cut 18,000 employees, which will cost them between $1.1bn and $1.6bn when … Continue reading →

Professionals in Australia’s minerals industry are experiencing double the average national unemployment rate, a survey has revealed. Research by the Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (AusIMM) showed the unemployment rate amongst workers, such as geologists and mining engineers, was 12.2 per cent. The institute’s chief executive, Michael Catchpole, said changes in commodity prices, cost-cutting … Continue reading →

Even before Microsoft announced plans to reduce its workforce by 18,000, a new report shows that job cuts in the technology sector were well ahead of last year’s pace. Through the first half of 2014, employers in the technology sector announced plans to cut payrolls by 48,402, 68 percent more than the 28,883 announced layoffs … Continue reading →

Job cut announcements by U.S.-based companies rose 17% in April from March, as employers in retail and financial services continued to shed workers, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Employers reported plans to shed 40,298 workers last month, according to Challenger’s monthly report. That was up from 34,399 in March and 6% higher … Continue reading →

The Visiting Nurse Service of New York is eliminating 775 positions, one of the largest health care mass layoffs in New York City that does not involve the closing of a hospital. The organization is the largest nonprofit home care agency in the country. The cuts represent a 4% reduction in its workforce. Those affected … Continue reading →

Walt Disney overhauled its struggling interactive division in a sweeping reorganization that will reduce the number of video games it develops and alter its advertising strategy to focus more on the fast-changing mobile market. As part of the revamp, Disney will lay off 700 employees, roughly one-quarter of the interactive division, according to a person … Continue reading →

Spanish flag carrier Iberia said Wednesday it had reached a deal with its pilots to slash their salaries by at least 14 percent, part of its bid to return to profit. Iberia’s roughly 1,400 pilots will see their salaries reduced by 14 percent, and possibly by another 4.0 percent depending on the airline’s profitability, under … Continue reading →

Planned job cuts by U.S. employers in January soared 47% from the prior month, according to data from an outplacement firm, with the heaviest layoffs to occur in a battered retail sector after many reported weak holiday sales. The data echoes what market observers have seen for weeks, as Target Corp. ( TGT ), Macy’s … Continue reading →

“Work share benefits both sides,” says Wayne Vroman, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute, a nonpartisan Washington think tank focused on economic and social policy research. “Employers get to retain skilled workers and at the same time workers aren’t getting laid off.” Continue reading →

The word layoff became a key part of the national economic vocabulary in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as factories shut down and workers were essentially told not to come in. It’s still used frequently in the business press, but now when you read “layoff” it’s most frequently a euphemism for workforce-cut. When Blackberry … Continue reading →

The number of layoffs and firings recently hit a record low level, according to government data released Tuesday morning. There were 1.51 million layoffs and discharges in July, down from 1.6 million in June and 1.79 million when the recession started at the end of 2007. The data go back to 2000. Those findings are … Continue reading →